Woman accused of shoplifting has children taken away

The mother who police said used her children as shield to get away from security has had her children taken away, a source told Action 7 News.

Surveillance video showed Nicole Valenzuela running out of a Target and swinging her baby carrier at security guards while her child was strapped inside. Police said she was shoplifting.

At the time, Valenzuela was still able to live with her children even after her arrest. But in August, police said that Valenzuela was at it again.

Albuquerque police said she took tags off a pair of sandals, put them on her son's feet and then tried to walk out of the store without paying.

A source told Action 7 News that the state has taken custody of her children.

Children, Youth and Families Department spokesman Enrique Knell said he cannot comment specifically on the case, but said the state takes into consideration if the parent is a repeat offender.

"When we pull a child it's because we have some major concern about the safety of that child, or those children in that household," Knell said. "Often there are cases where we leave a child in a family because we think those parents are going to work towards being safe parents. If we think that those protective capacities aren't there, and that children are at risk, then that's when we have to make the tough decisions working with law enforcement to remove those children."

When children are taken into state custody, they could be placed into a state home or with a family member if authorities decide it's a safe environment.

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